The Countess (film)
Encyclopedia
The Countess is a 2009 film about Elizabeth Báthory
. It is the third directorial effort by Julie Delpy
, who also stars as Bathory. Delpy has said, of the project, that "it sounds like a gothic [story] but it's more a drama. It's more focusing on the psychology of human beings when they're given power."
As a teenager, she marries the Hungarian baron Franz Nádasdy, with whom she had three children. After her husband's return from a campaign against the Ottomans, where he became ill, he succumbs to the consequences of the disease and dies. Elizabeth is now the sole heir of the property and is looking for recognition in the Hungarian Habsburg King Matthias II, who consents reluctantly, because of the considerable debt he has to the Countess after the Turkish wars.
At a ball, she meets the son of Count György Thurzó, István Thurzó, and falls in love with him. After a night together, he is forced by his father to end the relationship and marry the daughter of a wealthy merchant in Denmark. Erzsébet now believes that the age difference is to blame for the failure of the relationship. After a small accident where one of her servants gets hurt, Erzebet starts to believe that the blood of virgin girls can help her to reach eternal youth and beauty. To this end, her staff capture poor girls whom they kill brutally with an apparatus in order to get as much blood as possible. Only when she starts to kidnap aristocratic girls, the rumours reach the crown. Count György Thurzó is asked to investigate the incidents and he thus sends his son, Count István Thurzó, to Erzsébet.
István does not want to believe the allegations and succumbs once more to the countess. Only when he and one of his companions discovers evidence of her crime he can arrest the Countess. During the trial, Erzsébet is found guilty and due to her noble origin, she is convicted to spend the rest of her life walled into her room in castle Čachtice, in total isolation. Her staff is also found guilty and executed. All her property were awarded to the Count Thurzó, with the exception of Čachtice that is given to her children.
Driven by desperation, Erzsébet Báthory kills herself, after being walled in, and is then buried without a coffin and funeral ceremony in a humble grave.
One is led to doubt the sentence, and it remains unsure how much of the happenings that has been manipulated by Istvans father.
and is part of the Cannes Film Festival
2010.
Elizabeth Báthory
Countess Elizabeth Báthory de Ecsed was a countess from the renowned Báthory family of Hungarian nobility. Although in modern times she has been labelled the most prolific serial killer in history, the number of murders has been debated...
. It is the third directorial effort by Julie Delpy
Julie Delpy
Julie Delpy is a French-American actress, director, screenwriter, and singer-songwriter. She studied filmmaking at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts and has directed, written, and acted in more than 30 films, including Europa Europa , The Voyager , Three Colors: White , Before Sunrise...
, who also stars as Bathory. Delpy has said, of the project, that "it sounds like a gothic [story] but it's more a drama. It's more focusing on the psychology of human beings when they're given power."
Plot
Erzsébet Bathory was born in 1560 in Nyírbátor as the daughter of the Hungarian general George Báthory of Ecsed. Early on she was brought up, mainly by her mother, to accept hardness and cruelty. For example, she had to watch the torture and execution of her young peasant lover and father of her child when she becomes pregnant. Erzebet's mother takes the child from her directly after birth, never letting her get near the child.As a teenager, she marries the Hungarian baron Franz Nádasdy, with whom she had three children. After her husband's return from a campaign against the Ottomans, where he became ill, he succumbs to the consequences of the disease and dies. Elizabeth is now the sole heir of the property and is looking for recognition in the Hungarian Habsburg King Matthias II, who consents reluctantly, because of the considerable debt he has to the Countess after the Turkish wars.
At a ball, she meets the son of Count György Thurzó, István Thurzó, and falls in love with him. After a night together, he is forced by his father to end the relationship and marry the daughter of a wealthy merchant in Denmark. Erzsébet now believes that the age difference is to blame for the failure of the relationship. After a small accident where one of her servants gets hurt, Erzebet starts to believe that the blood of virgin girls can help her to reach eternal youth and beauty. To this end, her staff capture poor girls whom they kill brutally with an apparatus in order to get as much blood as possible. Only when she starts to kidnap aristocratic girls, the rumours reach the crown. Count György Thurzó is asked to investigate the incidents and he thus sends his son, Count István Thurzó, to Erzsébet.
István does not want to believe the allegations and succumbs once more to the countess. Only when he and one of his companions discovers evidence of her crime he can arrest the Countess. During the trial, Erzsébet is found guilty and due to her noble origin, she is convicted to spend the rest of her life walled into her room in castle Čachtice, in total isolation. Her staff is also found guilty and executed. All her property were awarded to the Count Thurzó, with the exception of Čachtice that is given to her children.
Driven by desperation, Erzsébet Báthory kills herself, after being walled in, and is then buried without a coffin and funeral ceremony in a humble grave.
One is led to doubt the sentence, and it remains unsure how much of the happenings that has been manipulated by Istvans father.
Cast
- Julie DelpyJulie DelpyJulie Delpy is a French-American actress, director, screenwriter, and singer-songwriter. She studied filmmaking at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts and has directed, written, and acted in more than 30 films, including Europa Europa , The Voyager , Three Colors: White , Before Sunrise...
as Countess Erzsébet Báthory - William HurtWilliam HurtWilliam McGill Hurt is an American stage and film actor. He received his acting training at the Juilliard School, and began acting on stage in the 1970s. Hurt made his film debut as a troubled scientist in the science-fiction feature Altered States , for which he received a Golden Globe nomination...
as György Thurzó - Daniel BrühlDaniel BrühlDaniel César Martín Brühl González Domingo is a Spanish/German actor. He is best known as Daniel Brühl.-Personal life:Brühl was born in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. His father was the late German stage director Hanno Brühl and his mother was a Spanish professor. He also has a brother and a sister...
as István Thurzó - Anamaria MarincaAnamaria MarincaAnamaria Marinca is a Romanian actress. She made her debut with the Channel 4 film Sex Traffic, for which she won British Academy Television Award for Best Actress...
as Anna Darvulia - Sebastian Blomberg as Dominic Vizakna
- Andy Gatjen as Miklos
- Rolf KaniesRolf KaniesRolf Kanies is a German born actor who played many high profile roles on the stage before switching to a career in film and television in 1997. Since then Rolf has specialized in German and international film and television...
as Count Krajevo - Jeanette Hain as Anna Báthory
Release
The film premiered on as part of the Berlin International Film FestivalBerlin International Film Festival
The Berlin International Film Festival , also called the Berlinale, is one of the world's leading film festivals and most reputable media events. It is held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in West Berlin in 1951, the festival has been celebrated annually in February since 1978...
and is part of the Cannes Film Festival
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
2010.